The Good Sister by Sally Hepworth

“The library, Janet used to say, is one of only a few places in the world that one doesn’t need to believe anything or buy anything to come inside.”

Yes, this is a strange quote to use to lead off a review of a novel promoted as a tale of suspense. However, at this point, you likely know me well enough that you aren’t surprised I selected this quote to capture the essence of this story. I actually found this book to be so much more than a suspense story and, if you give it a read, I think you will too.

Rose and Fern are fraternal twins, but really could not be more different. They had a challenging childhood and spent a year living in a car with their mother. During that year, their days were spent in a library. Fern loved this year and it led to her career working in a library.

I don’t want to tell you much about the plot of this story because it is all revealed perfectly as it is written by Sally Hepworth. I will tell you a bit about the structure. We alternate between Fern’s perspective, which is a narration of the present day, and Rose’s diary, which includes present day and memories from childhood. There are twists and surprises throughout. I anticipated some of these twists and found myself yelling at characters to beware; others surprised me.

I listened to the e-Audio of this book and thought the narrator (Barrie Kreinik) did a brilliant job of distinctly voicing both Rose and Fern giving them different voices and cadences.

I highly recommend this family drama, suspense story and mental health exploration. It is one that will stick with me for a long time!

Check out The Good Sister by Sally Hepworth at the Library (https://catalog.lclibs.org/polaris/search/title.aspx…) or in e-Audio at https://lclibs.overdrive.com/media/5538181.